


On the Down Low

by everlovingdeer



Series: Harry Potter Short Stories [96]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friends to Lovers, Overprotective, Secret Relationship, minimal angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-30
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2021-01-13 05:30:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,111
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21238964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/everlovingdeer/pseuds/everlovingdeer
Summary: “You know,” I said quietly, making sure my brothers didn’t hear me. “If Krum approached me; I’d leave you for him in a heartbeat.”





	1. On the Down Low

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally posted to other sites on 04/11/17 and it's been edited slightly before being posted here

We had all been called into the great hall for an ‘important announcement’ and I just _knew _it wasn’t going to be good news. The last important announcement that had been announced to the school was about the possibility of a murderer running amok in our school. And that was only last year. Godric knew what else was going to happen in this school. 

But I walked into the great hall without a complaint, Fred and George on either side of me. They both wrapped an arm around my shoulder, smothering me and every time I protested, they only clung on tighter. I cast a glance over my shoulder to Lee who followed after us with a laugh. At my pleading look, he shook his head and refused to help me.

And he called himself my boyfriend. 

“The scent of your body odour is overwhelming,” I protested, trying and failing to pry their arms off from me. They just hugged me closer. “Did mum never introduce you to deodorant?”

“We just _love _our little sister so much,” they chimed in unison, knowing how much it would irritate me. 

We were triplets; born within hours of each other. And yet, the two of them had the talking in unison thing down. No matter how hard I tried, I’d never been able to do it. My brothers, realising this, always used it to irritate me even further. 

I glared up at the pair of them. “I was born 15 minutes after George, _minutes._”

“Still makes you the youngest of the three of us, dear sister.” 

George was the first to release me from his arms and sat down at the Gryffindor table. Fred settled himself down beside George and I took my seat beside Fred. He’d always been _much _less observant than George who was surprisingly sharp when it came to figuring out things I wanted to keep hidden. I wasn’t willing to risk it. 

Without a word, Lee settled into the free seat beside me. Under the cover of the table, he reached out to entwine our fingers and I smiled at the simple action. We shared a glance from the corner of our eyes before turning to pay attention to Dumbledore who proceeded to tell us just what this important announcement really was. 

Godric, this had to be the stupidest decision the ministry had ever made or – well, there was no other option. Restarting the bloody Triwizard Tournament, as if that wasn’t just asking for more brushes with danger. Sudden murmurs started through the hall as the doors were pushed open and the students from Beauxbatons poured in, followed by the sound of excited chattering. 

My eyes roved over the students from the French school and from the responses coming from some of the boys surrounding me, I just knew that there were some veelas mixed in amongst the students. Lee squeezed my hand, making me look to him curiously. Realising that my brothers were amongst the boys distracted, he’d decided to take the risk. 

“Anyone caught your fancy?” he whispered in my ear, watching as I turned back to the French students. 

“I’m going to be honest,” I said quietly, “some of those French boys are gorgeous.” He narrowed his eyes and before I added, “But you of all people should know that I don’t go for just looks.”

“I give up; that’s such a backhanded compliment,” Lee said with an amused smile, shaking his head. “I’ll never be able to beat you.”

“And you shouldn’t try to either,” I responded primly, smiling up at him as the students from Beauxbatons took to their seats. “Come on Lee, you know you’re handsome.”

“It just helps to be reminded often,” he said with a cheeky grin, looking to the open doors as the students from Durmstrang filed into the hall. 

The students from the third and final school seemed stern in a way that the Beauxbatons hadn’t and Godric, the boys and girls were managing to intimidate me without even looking in my direction. My eyes drifted to their headmaster and – 

“Merlin’s saggy ball sack,” I swore making Lee recoil at the image. “Is that Viktor Krum?!”

It seemed the other students soon realised that we were in the presence of one of the greatest seekers in the international quidditch league and the murmurs carried on through the hall long after the last students had been seated. Dumbledore stood patiently at the front, waiting for silence. 

“You know,” I said quietly, making sure my brothers didn’t hear me. “If Krum approached me; I’d leave you for him in a heartbeat.”

Lee rolled his eyes, knowing I was joking and just nudged me teasingly with his arm. As silence finally filled the great hall, the details of the tournament were outlined and unsurprisingly, my brothers protested strongly to the age restriction applied to the tournament. The idiots were actually thinking about entering; and just what did they think mum would do when she found out they were planning on risking their lives in such a stupid way?

Long after the adults had stopped talking, Fred and George continued to complain about the age restriction and if their words didn’t make my inner troublemaker wake up, then could I really call myself their sister? Especially when I was the one that supplied them with most of their ideas? It was ironic really, most of the castle saw me as the good influence on the pair of them, the only person that was able to rein them in. But it was the opposite, and anyone that had spent more than half an hour with the three of us knew the truth. 

Now this, this had _so _many possibilities. 

“Dumbledore’s going to construct an age line around the cup, right?” I questioned, cutting into whatever they were saying. 

“Of course he is,” Fred said watching me closely. He’d picked up on something hidden in my words and nudged George, both of them looking at me closely. 

“Go on,” George prompted, giving me all of his attention.

“Well, it’s _just _an age line.” I shrugged casually. “Surely an ageing potion would be enough. Technically you’d be older – old enough to pass the line.”

And then they were grinning. Fred squeezed me into his side, claiming that he loved me the best out of his little sisters and I tried not to roll my eyes. He wouldn’t have dared say that if Ginny was around. George reached around Fred to ruffle my hair with a laugh. 

“You only love me when I help you,” I grumbled under my breath.

“Well it’s a good thing you help us every day then, isn’t it?” Fred shot back before the pair of them were leaning in close to whisper to one another. 

Over my shoulder, Lee asked, “Any chance the ageing potion will actually work?”

I leaned back into him, shaking my head. “No chance."

* * *

The weeks following Dumbledore’s announcement passed quickly with the highlights being the twins failed attempts at sneaking past the age line, and the secret moments I managed to steal with Lee. Just last night the announcement of the Yule Ball had sent another wave of excitement through the Gryffindor common room with the girls fourth year and above wondering just when they were going to find the time to buy their dresses. 

But, as I walked back to the common room from my last lesson of the day, all I could think about was that I wanted to be able to go to the ball with Lee. Except, there was a reason that we hadn’t announced our relationship yet. Who knew how the twins would react to the news? They were stiflingly overprotective, and I didn’t think they’d take my secret dating of their best friend all that well. 

It wasn’t as if we could go with other people to the ball either. Jealousy did ugly things to a relationship and I didn’t want it to have any role in my relationship with Lee. 

“Weasley,” someone called out and I had to look around the corridor to make sure that they were talking to me. There were _five _Weasleys currently within the castle walls and the number of times we’d all responded to a call that wasn’t for us were too many to count. 

Realising that I _was _the only Weasley in the hall, I stopped to greet the Hufflepuff seventh year who approached me with a smile. “Williams. Did you need anything?”

“About that,” he said, growing a little nervous as he came to a stop in front of me. 

He reached out to rub the back of his neck and I bit my bottom lip hesitantly. Surely, he wasn’t going to – 

“Did you hear about the Yule Ball announcement?” 

Godric, he was. 

I nodded with a sigh, licking my bottom lip and already thinking of ways to answer him. A flat-out rejection would be rude, would probably hurt him and maybe even cause a rift in the tentative friendship I’d formed with Williams during our shared detentions. I didn’t even consider saying yes. 

“Are you going with anyone?”

An arm was slung around my shoulder, making me look up into George’s face. His eyebrows were raised as he looked assessingly over the older Hufflepuff. “And what does that have to do with you?”

Fred stepped up to my other side, and I just knew that the embarrassment I was going to suffer had increased tenfold. From Fred’s other side, Lee looked over Williams with a cool eye before meeting mine. He arched a single eyebrow and I looked away from him, wondering _why _I had the misfortune of having them stumble upon me on their way back from Potions. 

“Just piss off mate,” Fred said bluntly, making Williams look between my two identical brothers with surprise. “She won’t be going with you.”

“And who are you to make that decision for her?” I would have admired Williams’ bravery if, in that moment, it hadn’t been so completely stupid. 

“Her older brother, clearly.” Fred scoffed, nudging me with his shoulder. “He’s not exactly the brightest, is he? You’ve dodged a bullet.”

I tried not to groan, wanting to sink to the floor in embarrassment. Why me?! Just who was it that I’d managed to piss off enough for them to decide to punish me by giving me such bad fortune?

“Anyway,” George said, calmer than Fred, “she’s planning on joining a nunnery so run along.”

Ignoring the look of surprise I threw him at his careless remark, George waved Williams away who accepted defeat. He knew he’d never get past my brothers and I didn’t blame him for tucking his tail between his legs and running away. 

Once Williams disappeared out of sight, I moved away from the three of them. Standing across from the three best friends, I crossed my arms and narrowed my eyes. My brothers, finding nothing wrong with what they’d done, met my eyes with no sign of regret.

“I had it sorted,” I said. “There was no need for you to intrude and make a scene like that.”

“I don’t think we made a scene,” Fred denied, looking to Lee. “Do you?” When Lee shook his head, ignoring the way I shot him an irritated glance, Fred grinned. “See?”

Sighing, I asked impatiently, “If someone else asks me, are you going to behave like that again?”

The twin nods I received in answer to the question had me rolling my eyes at them. Really, this was getting to become too much. There was being protective, hell there was being _overprotective, _but unsurprisingly my brothers always, without fail, managed to go above and beyond that standard. 

“You’d rather I go alone and embarrass myself by going without a date?” Before they could answer me, I added quickly, “Think carefully before you speak.”

Sensing my growing anger, George immediately attempted to make things better. “We just don’t want you to get hurt.”

“Exactly. We don’t want you being felt up by some slimy git,” Fred tried to cajole. 

Lee cleared his throat abruptly, gaining all our attention in the space of seconds. We looked curiously towards him and I saw the way he fidgeted on his feet slightly. 

He wasn’t looking at me as he spoke, instead, he looked to my brothers and offered, “I could take her.” Shock instantly registered on our faces, but he spoke on before any of us could say a word. “You know I won’t try anything unsavoury, that I won’t do anything she’s not comfortable with, and I won’t have to bother trying to ask someone else to go with me.”

George was the first to begin to actually consider the offer and Fred, realising this scoffed. Before Fred could begin to huff, George muttered, “He _is _the lesser of two evils.”

My brothers, had the _audacity, _the _nerve, _to look to Lee and ‘formally’ give him their permission. Finally remembering my presence, the three best friends looked to me as if wanting me to thank them for finding me a date. 

I did the very opposite. 

“What the hell made you think that either of you has a say in who I’m going with?” I demanded, pinning my brothers to their spots with my stare. 

They wisely chose to remain speechless, knowing it would annoy me even more if they tried to defend themselves. As I turned to stalk away from them, they made no move to follow after me. 

I barely made it a few steps away from the three of them when I heard Lee address my brothers, “I’ll go and have a word with her”, before jogging after me. He easily caught up to me, dropping into step beside me as I continued to walk away from my brothers. I wasn’t sure where I was planning on going exactly, as long as I got away from them; that meant the common room was out of question. 

When we were no longer in their earshot, Lee asked, “Don’t you want to go to the Yule ball with me?”

“Don’t be stupid Lee,” I said gently, looking to him and rolling my eyes slightly. “Who else would I want to go to the ball with?”

He grinned widely at that before scanning the corridor and when he found no sign of short ginger hair, he reached out to hold my hand. Linking my fingers through his, we walked slowly through the hallways. Neither of us wanted to tempt fate and end up with one of my siblings rounding the corner. As we walked slowly, I couldn’t help but smile at the gentle way Lee’s thumb was rubbing back and forth on the back of my hand. 

“So,” he said after a moment’s silence. “Can I ask what made you so annoyed back there?”

“They’re so annoying,” I groaned instantly. “It’s almost smothering. The moment boys started noticing me in third year they became so irritating about keeping me away from them. But if I even _tried _to do the same to either of them they’d throw a fit. Bloody twats.”

“They just care about you,” he said quietly, squeezing my hand. “You have to know that – you _are _their little sister, no matter how often you protest to the little part.”

“Well they care too much,” I muttered, puffing out my bottom lip in annoyance. 

“Maybe,” he agreed before adopting a teasing grin. Tugging on our joined hands, he pulled me in closer to him as we walked. “Although, I couldn’t help but notice that your brothers interrupted you before you could respond to Williams. What were you going to tell him? Or were you planning on accepting his offer?”

“Oh please,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes and nudging my boyfriend with my hip. He stumbled away from me slightly, releasing my hand only to laugh and loop an arm around my shoulder. “He’s not exactly my type.”

“Oh really,” he hummed, meeting my eyes. 

I nodded, rising up slightly to press a kiss to the underside of his jaw. Pulling away from him I saw the way his smile just grew bigger and Merlin, I’d be lying if I said that mine didn’t too. “You should know my type better than anyone.”

“That I do.” His grin hesitated for a moment before he asked tentatively, “Maybe after the ball, we can finally tell your brothers and we won’t have to sneak around like we’ve been doing something bad? Godric, we’ve been doing this since _fourth _year – and that in itself, is mad.”

“There’ll be backlash,” I warned him slowly. “Most of it from Fred and George – your best friends.”

“But I’ll be able to hold your hand whenever I want,” he argued back.

I struggled not to smile. “Well, you’ll _definitely _have to dodge some curses.”

“We’ll be able to go to Hogsmeade on a date without worrying about someone seeing us.”

“You know better than anyone what kind of mischief my brothers are capable of getting up to.”

“And I’ll be able to kiss you without wondering if someone will suddenly appear and spy us.”

“Now _that _is very convincing,” I said with a teasing grin. “Well, you’ve won me over.”

“Like I knew I would,” he said, the arm around my shoulder pulling me into his side as he leaned over to press a kiss to my forehead. “Although, now that I’m thinking about it – your brothers are _very _capable of causing me some serious harm.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll protect you,” I assured him, pulling slightly at his tie. “No matter how angry they are at me, they won’t hurt me. Mum would kill them for one thing, and then _I _would kill them.”

“I hope you’re prepared for me to use you as a human shield.” 

I laughed, realising that he was serious. Merlin knew how my brothers would react to knowing the truth about Lee and my relationship. They hadn’t questioned how the pair of us became so much closer over the space of the last few years and instead thought that because he was their best friend, he was automatically another brother of mine. They couldn’t have been more wrong. 

* * *

In the hours leading up to the Yule Ball, I’d left myself in Alicia’s trusty hands and she had a field day. Of the girls in our dorm, she was the most proficient in make-up and hair charms and often stated that if she knew she looked her best then she knew she was ready to face the rest of the day. She called it her confidence spell. 

Usually, I refused to let her touch my hair or my face because – let’s be honest it was only going to get ruined as I helped my brothers with their next act of mischief. It seemed like a terrible waste of all the effort she’d put into helping me get ready but today was one of the rare occasions where I accepted her offer – the other occasions being secret dates with Lee. 

She was over the moon at my willingness to be her model and she eagerly moved around me, casting charms as she went. By the time she was finished helping me, she set about getting ready herself and, as a group, all the sixth-year girls descended into the Gryffindor common room. 

Walking down the stairs, I spied Fred and George as they sat on the sofa, talking between themselves and waiting for the arrival of their dates. At the sound of heels tapping against the stone of the stairs, they looked up and stood to greet us all. But in very poor sport, they bypassed their dates and came to circle around me like bloody hawks. Of course, Angie and Alicia didn’t mind and instead tolerated their behaviour with an amused smile, trying not to laugh at my misfortune. 

“Now who could this be, Forge?” George asked as he continued to circle me, eventually coming to a stop as they stood side by side in front of me. 

“I don’t know Gred,” Fred said with a grin, nudging George. “But there’s no way she’s our sister.”

“She looks too beautiful,” they agreed at once and I scoffed.

“Why can’t you just compliment me like normal people?” I muttered with a pout. The pair of them shared an amused look, smiling for me to see.

“Because that’s too boring.” George rolled his eyes, extending a hand to flick me on my forehead.

“And what makes you think we’re _normal_?” Fred asked as though it was the biggest insult I could have given him. “We’ve been together since the _womb, _dear sister and yet you don’t even know us that well.”

“Oh stop it,” I insisted, swatting at his arm. “Although, the pair of you scrub up quite well too.”

They puffed their chests up in pride, reaching up at the same time to straighten each other’s bowties. “Thank you, dear sister.”

_Again, _with the synchronised talking.

“Shouldn’t you be heading to your dates?” I suggested pointedly, spying Lee as he walked into the common room from his dorm. 

“We need to talk to you first,” George said, his voice becoming abruptly serious.

“Please don’t,” I pleaded under my breath. 

They didn’t listen anyway. 

“Look.” Fred started, sharing a look with George, “Lee’s our friend and has been _your _friend for years too but he’s still a boy and boys can’t be trusted.”

“You’ve told me this before,” I pointed out, rolling my eyes slightly. Merlin, how many times was I going to have to sit through this conversation? Hopefully, by the end of the night, they’d know that I was dating Lee and would finally relent. Though somehow, I doubted it. 

“We’re just saying that we won’t question it if you have to hex Lee today,” George added quickly, the pair of them protesting when I ushered them away to their dates before they gout spout anymore rubbish. 

They protested heavily at first; the two of them easily outmanoeuvring me. But after some coordination with Angie and Alicia, the pair of them were easily restrained by their dates and were _finally _on their way out of the common room. Only then did I allow myself to turn back to Lee who made a show of looking me over from head to toe before winking. I fought a smile, meeting him halfway when he moved to close the distance between us with long strides.

“You’re stunning,” he said, and it was the truth in his voice that had me blushing. 

“Anyone would think you’re trying to charm me.”

“I don’t need to,” he said quietly, shaking his head a little. “You’re mine already so why’s charm necessary? I’m only speaking the truth.”

“Were you always such a smooth talker?” I wondered before grinning when I realised he wasn’t able to look away from my lips. Speaking quietly, I said, “You can you know – if you want to.”

“Of course I want to,” he muttered and not getting another moment pass before he leaned down to kiss me. 

It was a simple press of his lips to mine and the gasp that echoed around the common room made sure that it didn’t progress any further. I stepped away from Lee with a frustrated sigh, looking past his shoulder to find Ron staring at us with wide eyes. Well, that was one brother down. Only multiple left to go. 

Godric, just thinking about it was giving me a headache. 

Lee turned too, staring at my youngest brother with apprehensive eyes. Ron could do nothing more than splutter, looking between the pair of us and pointing uselessly in our direction. Harry, standing at my brother’s side and knowing how quick he could be to anger, placed a hand on his arm – just in case. Grateful for the help, I sent Harry a tentative smile. 

“You – and _you! _You –”

When it became obvious that he wasn’t going to progress past those few words, I rolled my eyes before motioning for Ron to keep his mouth zipped shut. He didn’t approve of the gesture and gasped dramatically in response. 

“Keep it to yourself Ronnikins,” I threatened before turning to meet Lee’s amused eyes. Offering him my arm with a sweet smile, I asked, “Shall we?”

He nodded, slipping my arm into his and trying not to chuckle as he said, “Let’s go.”

We brushed past Ron who _still _hadn’t quite recovered from his shock. By the time we descended into the ball most of the couples were already inside and were just waiting for the entrance of the champions. We didn’t have to wait long.

After watching Harry fumble through his first dance, the rest of the night progressed smoothly, and I found myself spending most of it on the dance floor, wrapped up in Lee’s arms. Not that I was complaining. Lee’s hands never strayed from my waist as he leaned in close to whisper in my ear.

“I’ve got three of your brothers glaring at me from three different parts of the room,” he said quietly, and I turned my head slightly towards his, grinning.

“Intimidated? And these are only the younger ones. Merlin, just wait until you meet Bill and Charlie.”

The prospect of meeting my two eldest brothers as my boyfriend threw Lee a little but he shook his head a little as if to clear his thoughts. I didn’t blame him – not when I had so _many _brothers. “Not intimidated. I just can’t shake the feeling that I’m under surveillance.”

“Well,” I said after a moment and gesturing to one of the hidden corners of the hall, “why don’t we try and escape it for a moment?”

He met my eyes and raised an eyebrow slyly. One side of his lips pulled up higher than the other as he asked, “Shall we?”

“I wouldn’t have offered otherwise,” I said truthfully, making him grin properly. Godric, his smile was always the one thing that stole my breath.

With forced casual steps, we walked towards the edge of the room, hiding behind one of the pillars and I was the first to close the distance between us. Looping my arms around his neck, I pressed a long, slow kiss to his lips. When I pulled back, peering into his face, I found him grimacing. Well, that was more than a little insulting. 

“Well, that’s not the facial expression I was expecting,” I part teased, wondering what was wrong.

“Your brothers,” he murmured weakly and I knew then that they’d followed us. I should have known they wouldn’t let us out of their sight. But I hadn’t thought; I’d just been so happy about finally being able to be with Lee in front of everyone else that I didn’t think. 

Merlin, I knew we’d agreed to tell my brothers after the ball, but this was _not _the way I’d planned on them finding out. This was only going to work against us. Steeling myself with a quick breath, I squeezed Lee’s hand before turning to face my raging brothers. Angie and Alicia had followed after them, clearly trying to get them to give me some space to breathe but they obviously hadn’t listened to them. And even now, as the girls tried to convince them to remain rational-minded and not to make a scene, their words fell on deaf ears. They nailed me to the spot, shooting daggers out of their eyes as I tried not to fidget in front of them. I needed to put up a strong front. 

“Any chance there’s any mistletoe around?” I tried quietly.

“What for?” Lee asked, confused. 

“We could always blame it on the mistletoe.”

“There’s not a sprig insight.” Making up my mind, I stepped in front of Lee who held my hand tightly. “What are you doing?”

“They won’t try to curse me. You, on the other hand, I’m not so sure about.”

Fred, growing tired of being ignored, demanded loudly, “What the hell is going on?”

“Lower your voice,” I hissed urgently. “Don’t make a scene!”

“_Don’t make a scene!” _George repeated incredulously. “Are you going to explain what’s going on or not?”

“We’re dating,” Lee said truthfully from behind me but my brothers didn’t believe him. They looked to me for confirmation and at my nod, I watched as they clenched their jaws. 

“Since when?” George asked, trying to maintain his cool. I wondered just how long he’d be able to do that. 

I winced. Godric I’d been hoping that they wouldn’t ask me that. With hesitation, I answered truthfully, “Fourth year. Well, halfway through fourth year anyway.”

“March 12th,” Lee supplied, and my brothers did _not _appreciate his honesty. 

“How did we not notice?” Fred sputtered, glaring at Lee who was suddenly unable to let go of my hand, scared of how his two best friends would react. 

When Fred looked to me for an answer, I admitted quietly, “We were very careful.”

“Are you bragging?” George demanded. “Does sneaking around make you so happy?”

“George,” I said with a sigh. “There’s no need to overreact about this. Merlin –”

“We trusted you.” Fred’s words weren’t aimed at me. Rather they were aimed at the silent boy standing behind me and from the way he let go of my hand I knew they struck deep. “We trusted you and you broke our trust – sneaking around with our _sister_!”

He nodded, letting out a deep breath and agreeing, “I probably deserve that.”

Without another word, the pair of them stormed away from us, each of them snagging their respective dates by the hand and dragging them away. From over their shoulders, the girls threw a curious glance and I just knew I’d have to fill them in on everything once I returned to the dorm.

Lee’s hands wrapped around my waist from behind as he asked quietly, “Are you alright?”

I nodded, turning in his arms to look into his eyes as I asked, “Are you?”

“I will be,” he admitted with a weak smile.

“Godric I’m sorry,” I murmured, pressing my forehead against his shoulder. “They’re such bloody drama queens.”

* * *

The next morning I found myself awake far earlier than I had ever voluntarily woken up. After getting ready for the day, I walked down into the common room and found my eyes trained onto the stairs leading from the boy’s dorms. Godric knew what happened within the walls of their dorm room. My brothers had left the ball early, clearly not in the mood to do stick around any longer and we had only stuck around for another hour or so because we hoped they’d cool off during that time. But once we’d returned to the common room and Lee had headed into his room, there was nothing else I could have done. He was left alone with my brothers. 

Of the three, Lee was the first to emerge from the dorms and spying me waiting in the common room, he joined me on the sofa. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, pressing a kiss to my forehead.

“What happened?” I asked quietly, watching as he smiled a little sadly. “They didn’t try to hex you, did they?”

He shook his head. “They interrogated me for a _long _time – going on almost an hour before they decided to ice me out.”

“Merlin I’m sorry,” I said with a sigh, taking his hand between both of mine and holding it tight. “If you weren’t dating me then –”

“But I _am _dating you,” he cut in forcefully, meeting my eyes with a stern look. “So don’t go and get any stupid ideas in your head; I plan on being with you for a lot longer.”

His words had me smiling gratefully and my eyes drifted to the stairs where my brothers had appeared, deep in conversation. Lee followed my eyes and faltered for a moment before dropping his arm from around me. He rose to his feet with a sigh, and I watched him with a frown.

“Where are you going?”

“I’ll save you a seat at breakfast,” was all he said as he walked away from the sofa, leaving me behind and heading towards the portrait hole. 

No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn’t ask him to stay back and face my brothers with me. He’d already had to suffer through their interrogation and now it was my turn to do the same. Merlin, if they stopped being friends over something so ridiculous – 

Weren’t the three of them supposed to be _best _friends? What kind of best friends gave each other up so quickly? 

I hung back, waiting for my brothers to step into the common room. By the time they reached the bottom of the stairs, their conversation had ended and their eyes had found my lone figure in the common room. I waited anxiously to see what they’d do and felt my heart break a little when Fred began to walk right past me. George hesitated a little longer but inevitably went to follow after Fred.

“Are you going to ice me out too?” I asked quietly, the words enough to stop them in their step. 

Turning back to face me, the pair of them shared a look and I fidgeted awkwardly with my hands. Why weren’t they saying anything? Their anger I could deal with. But this silence, this silence was completely foreign to me. 

Eventually, Fred sighed and asked, “Why did you keep it hidden for so long?”

“Because we knew how badly you’d react,” I said truthfully. “You’d only do something stupid like demand that I break up with him. But I can’t do that. Merlin, I _really _like him, and I haven’t ever felt this way about anyone before. Isn’t that enough of a reason?”

“I have to admit that I felt a little betrayed,” George confessed, not sure what else to say. “My best friend and my little sister –”

“Well, what would the pair of you have me do then?” I demanded. “Do you want me to break up with him and end up heartbroken after breaking his heart too? Would that make the pair of you feel more _comfortable_? Having to deal with your little sister when she can’t even look at your best friend anymore?”

They shared a look before speaking in unison, “That’s not it either.”

“Then tell me what to do,” I pleaded quietly. “Because I can’t watch three of the people I love the most turning their backs on each other just because of me.”

“Do you _love _him?” Fred asked pointedly, tucking his hands into his pockets and looking a little uncomfortable at the topic.

“A little more every day,” I admitted, watching them make a face at the honest confession. 

George was a little more reluctant as he began, “If it ends badly –”

“It won’t,” I assured them both.

I watched the pair of them share a grimace before they both walked towards me.

“We won’t try anything,” they promised truthfully and before I could say another word, I found myself wrapped up in their arms.

Returning the hug gratefully, I let out a deep breath and grinned. I couldn’t wait to tell Lee. The soft hug didn’t last very long, and I should have known that it wouldn’t. Suddenly, without a word, my brothers began squeezing me tight in their arms and I struggled to release myself. They clung on tight, despite each of my protests and started laughing at my futile pushes. 

They released me without a word and the three of us walked down to the great hall for breakfast. I found Lee settled at the Gryffindor table where he’d saved me a seat, just as he’d promised. Settling myself into the seat beside him, I threw my arms around Lee who staggered slightly at the force of it. Without giving him the chance to question my sudden enthusiasm, I kissed him soundly in front of all the other students and by the time I pulled back, the whispers were already flittering through the hall.

Lee grinned, framing my face with his hand. “It went well, then?”

Fred, who’d seated himself across from the pair of us, retched dramatically making us part. “Keep your hands to yourself, Jordan.”

“No PDA at the table either,” George added sternly and, seated beside my boyfriend, I watched as the three best friends shared a smile. I didn’t bother to fight my own as I leaned into Lee’s side. 


	2. Epilogue: 7 Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why was being a good sister-in-law getting me into trouble? 

_7 YEARS LATER _

Why was being a good sister-in-law getting me into trouble? 

Merlin, when Fleur had owled to ask if she could floo over so she could talk, I hadn’t expected her to confess to me that she thought she was pregnant again. I _definitely _hadn’t expected her to pull out a muggle pregnancy test – she hadn’t risked buying a magical one in case Bill somehow caught wind of it – and I’d held her hand the entire time as we waited for the result to show up. I hadn’t expected it all to come back and bite _me _in the arse.

The test came up positive, and she wasn’t surprised in the least, but it had taken a _long _talk for me to convince her to floo back home to talk to Bill. But eventually she left my house and promised me that she would talk to Bill as soon as she returned to their family home. Pleased that I’d done my good deed for the day, I headed into the kitchen to begin preparing dinner.

Godric I should have reminded her to throw the test in the bin, to take it with her or hell, to burn it into ashes. I should have told her to do _anything _other than leaving it lying casually on the side where I wouldn’t notice it until my husband came home and saw it in an instant. Of course, I remained blissfully unaware of the developing situation until he walked into the kitchen, the test held in his hand. 

“Love,” he called out, walking slowly into the room and I hadn’t thought anything was wrong.

“Are you back?” I asked with a smile, not yet turning to look at him. “Don’t you finish later today?”

“I finished early,” he explained before clearing his throat and asking. “What’s this?”

I looked away from the bubbling pot on the stove to find my husband standing cautiously in the doorway of the kitchen, “What’s what?” 

He raised the test slightly and I felt all the blood leave my face. Godric’s ghost. 

I had been silent for too long and Lee had obviously taken my silence to mean something when really it meant quite the opposite. A grin slowly spread across his face as he approached me, holding his arms open for me. I shook my head instantly, outstretching a hand as if to halt his progress. He frowned a little, confused but still continued to walk towards me, now at a slower pace. 

“It’s not what you think,” I said drawing the words out, but it was clear that he didn’t believe me. Godric, why me?! 

“I know it’s a bit sooner than we planned,” he said gently, trying to placate me as if he thought _I _was the one that wasn’t ready to deal with the ‘news’. “But that doesn’t matter. So what if it’s a honeymoon baby? We were going to –”

“_No_,” I insisted firmly, shaking my head again. His eyebrows rose as he noticed the force that I was denying everything with. “You don’t understand Lee. It’s _really _isn’t what you think; it’s not mine.”

That had him stopping in his step. He looked closely between me and the test which he promptly set aside. Crossing his arms, he asked with quiet confusion, “What?”

“It’s not mine,” I repeated, rambling when I realised that he wasn’t prepared to speak a word. “It’s Fleur’s. She came over here to try it out because she was scared about doing it on her own and with Victoire still quite small she wasn’t sure if this is the right time to have another one so soon. I guess she forgot to take it with her, or throw it away – whatever you’re supposed to do with those things and –”

“I get it,” he said finally, his shoulders sinking a little and thankfully stopping me from having to go on in an attempt to fill the silence that had stretched out between us. “Just – are you _sure _it’s not yours?”

“Come _on _Lee,” I said, rolling my eyes a little as I turned back to the stove. Lowering the heat, I glanced back at my husband. “I think I’d remember peeing on that bloody stick, don’t you?”

Lee sighed from behind me and I bit my bottom lip, wishing I’d had more tact. But clearly, growing up side by side with Fred and George hadn’t instilled that in me. Godric, he seemed more upset then I thought he’d be – not that I’d ever imagined something like this would happen. Who knew that a small stick of plastic could cause such a big problem?

If anything, I‘d have expected him to freak out about seeing the positive test but here he was, doing the very opposite. He made no move to go anywhere and I remained at the stove, hyperaware of his presence behind me. His unexpected reaction had rendered me a little unsure of how to progress. 

“Are you done?” he asked me quietly, “With the cooking?”

“I think so,” I said sending a small look his way. “I just need to leave this simmering for about half an hour. Are you hungry?”

“Not really.” He cleared his throat slightly and I jumped a little when his hands suddenly wrapped around my waist, “But half an hour, yeah?”

“Well mum leaves hers for an hour but I don’t have the patience for that,” I confessed, leaning back into him a little.

“Perfect; that’s plenty of time.”

My eyebrows furrowed as I turned curiously towards him, “For what – _Lee_!”

I shrieked his name as I suddenly found myself hoisted into his arms. Scrambling to wrap my arms around his shoulder, I met his stare with wide eyes.

“What the hell are you doing?” I protested as he began to carry me out of the kitchen. “Lee! Are you going to answer me or what?”

“You didn’t need to take the test, right? Well, we’re just going to have to keep trying until you need to.”


End file.
